Alt Fuels
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Texas plans to offer rebates to buyers of new electric cars, plug-in hybrids, and natural-gas vehicles.
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Natural-Gas Powered 2015 Chevy Impala To Start At $38,210
The 2015 bi-fuel Chevrolet Impala can run on natural gas or gasoline.
Stephen Edelstein -
EPA Resets Ethanol Rules To Reflect Reality: Cellulosic Sources Don't Exist
For many months now, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has faced a dilemma: What to do about its rules that millions of gallons of cellulosic ethanol be blended into the U.S. gasoline supply. Now, The Detroit News reports that the agency has decided to accept reality: Supplies of that fuel...
John Voelcker -
Nine New Projects Announced For Clean Vehicles In National Parks
Nine U.S. national parks will deploy clean vehicles as part of an ongoing green initiative.
Stephen Edelstein -
E85 By The Numbers: One Station In 50 For One Car In 20
The number of E85 fueling stations has grown significantly over the past few years, but they're still few and far between.
Stephen Edelstein -
Proposal: Buy Out, Shut Down U.S. Coal Industry For $50 Billion
Give Felix Kramer credit for thinking big. Twelve years ago, he and others founded CalCars, a group dedicated to promoting plug-in hybrid vehicles with large battery packs--and built the world's first plug-in Prius hybrid. Now he and coauthor Gil Friend have published an audacious proposal to buy...
John Voelcker -
Honda hopes to encourage suppliers to use CNG for their delivery vehicles.
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Honda Opens High-Pressure Hydrogen Fueling Station In SoCal
Honda hopes its new hydrogen-fueling protocol will become the industry standard.
Stephen Edelstein -
Gasoline Substitute Made From Plant Waste Developed By UC-Davis
Plant-based diesel has been available for many years now but making a true gasoline-like hydrocarbon from plant oils has proven a lot more difficult. Chemists at the University of California, Davis think they've cracked it, though, using a new technique to make "biogasoline" from plant waste...
Antony Ingram -
Long-Lived Clean Power: Wind Turbines Last 25 Years, Study Says
A British study claims that wind turbines can last 25 years without the need for upgrades or replacement.
Stephen Edelstein -
Flex-Fuel Vehicles And E85: Why Ethanol Isn't Making Its Numbers
The EPA plans to cut 1.4 billion gallons from its 2014 renewable-fuels target.
Stephen Edelstein -
Boeing Seeks To Certify Biodiesel For Jet Fuel Around The World
Tens of thousands of flights carry millions of passengers around the globe on a daily basis. Needless to say, the environmental impact of this is fairly large--but both airlines and aircraft makers are keen to reduce that impact and lower their own costs, too. Biofuel is the current buzzword in the...
Antony Ingram -
Every so often, Hyundai posts an entry on its "Hyundai Like Sunday" blog, which promotes itself as "Truth, Candor and Conversation." Two months ago, the company's Elizabeth Chun offered some thoughts on its upcoming 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell compact crossover. That vehicle will be offered for lease this spring in selected markets in Southern California. MORE: 2015 Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell: Hydrogen Crossover First Drive We drove the Tucson Fuel Cell in early December, and found it to be perfectly suitable for daily and long-distance use--though gutless at higher speeds--assuming hydrogen...
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Obama Promotes Natural-Gas Fueling Stations In State Of The Union Address
Once again, President Barack Obama used the State of the Union Address on Tuesday night to raise the issue of natural gas vehicles as a way of promoting energy independence and cutting the impact of climate change. In his talk, Obama urged the U.S. Congress to support the construction of...
Antony Ingram -
Toyota FCV Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Test Cars, Concept Shown At CES
Toyota revealed a bit more about its plans to offer a hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle for sale next year, at a press event held today at the opening of the huge Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The company sounded a confident note on the prospects for electric vehicles that use power generated...
John Voelcker -
More Efficient Solar Panels: Make Them Like Lego, Play Music For Them!
Two new studies suggest unorthodox ways to improve the efficiency of solar panels.
Stephen Edelstein -
Renewable 'Pedal Power' To Light Times Square Ball Tonight
Never let it be said that New York City doesn't get everything it can out of its 50 million-plus tourist visitors each year. In this case, it's pedal-powered energy to offset the roughly 50 kilowatt-hours of electricity consumed by the famous lighted ball that drops to signal the New Year. Times...
John Voelcker -
Could Congress Kill Ethanol Mandate Altogether In 2014?
Ethanol has been a key component of the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard since the 2007 passage of the Energy Security and Independence Act. Now, there appears to be a chance that rules requiring minimum volumes of ethanol to be blended into vehicle fuel could be reformed or scrapped altogether in...
Antony Ingram -
Given how familiar most of us are with cars, it's easy to see them as the be-all and end-all when it comes to cleaning up transportation. Reduce fossil fuels, increase electric propulsion, increase use of biofuels, job done. With over a billion cars on roads around the world improving them is clearly a priority, but other industries are seeking alternatives to conventional fossil fuels too, one of which is the aviation industry. And as aviation gears up for a very real push towards biofuels, we ask--is aviation actually the ideal market for such fuels, rather than the car industry? The latest...
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Methanol Made With Renewable Energy Could Power Fuel Cells (Video)
Could a methanol economy replace the hydrogen economy?
Stephen Edelstein -
Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Cars Price-Competitive With Electrics By 2030, Toyota Says
Toyota hopes advances in design and parts sharing will cut the cost of fuel-cell vehicles.
Stephen Edelstein -
Ethanol A Victim Of Change As Gasoline Sales Have Flatlined?
Eight years ago, ethanol was going to let the U.S. grow its own vehicle fuel, reduce its use of gasoline made from imported oil, and boost energy security. How much have you heard about those themes lately? Not much, we'd wager. A lot has changed since the 2007 passage of the Energy Independence...
John Voelcker -
New Hyundai Intrado Fuel-Cell Concept For 2014 Geneva Motor Show
Hyundai announced this morning that it will unveil a new hydrogen fuel-cell concept vehicle, to be known as the Intrado, at the 2014 Geneva Motor Show in March. The Hyundai Intrado Concept will be constructed around a "super-lightweight structure" that employs a "mixture of advanced materials" that...
John Voelcker -
Can Hydrogen Fuel-Cell Vehicles Compete With Electric Cars?
Suddenly, hydrogen fuel-cell cars are back in the news. Headlines have proclaimed a coming battle between plug-in electric cars and the new shining hope, hydrogen-powered vehicles. Three automakers--Honda, Hyundai, and Toyota--will offer fuel-cell cars to consumers by the end of 2015, albeit in...
John Voelcker